Daily Current Affairs: 17 January 2014

1) Renowned veteran actress Suchitra Sen passed away: Legendary actor Suchitra Sen, who was known as the Greta Garbo of Bengali cinema and had 60 films to her credit including the memorable 'Aandhi' and' Deep Jwele Jai', on 17 January 2014 (Friday) died of a heart attack at a super-speciality hospital. She was the first ever Indian actress to win an international award - receiving the Silver Prize for Best Actress at the Moscow Film Festival for 'Saptapadi'.

2) Rahul won’t be PM candidate, CWC decision final: Sonia Gandhi-  In an apparent bid to avoid reopening of the issue, Congress president Sonia Gandhi on Friday said that the CWC decision on Rahul Gandhi not being named as party's prime ministerial candidate is final.

3) RBI included Hong Kong and Macau in the sensitive list: Hong Kong and Macau, the 2 Special Administrative Regions of China, includeded in the sensitive list of countries by the Reserve Bank of India (RBI).  Such regions require prior approval of RBI for setting up business or related activities in India. Pakistan, Bangladesh, Sri Lanka, Afghanistan, Iran and China are already a part of this list.

4) India stuns Germany in HWL classification match: India will now face Belgium in the fifth-sixth place play-off match Saturday, while Germany will take on Argentina to avoid the wooden-spoon in the eight-nation tournament.

5) Syedna Mohammed Burhanuddin passed away:  The spiritual leader of Dawoodi Bohra community Dr Syedna Mohammed Burhanuddin passed away on Friday after a cardiac arrest in Mumbai. He was 102. His 70-year old son Syedna Mufaddal Saifuddin has succeeded him, it was announced. Last year, thousands of Dawoodi Bohras from across the world flocked to the city to celebrate Syedna Mohammed Burhanuddin’s 102nd birthday.

6) Yushi, Taiwanese poet awarded Thiruvalluvar award: Taiwanese poet Yushi was awarded the Thiruvalluvar award on 15 January 2014 by the Tamil Nadu government in Chennai. Yushi is the first foreign scholar to receive Thiruvalluvar award.

7) Jamila Bayaz, first women to be appointed police chief of Kabul province: Jamila Bayaz was appointed as the police chief of District One of Kabul province on 15 January 2014. She is the first woman in Afghanistan to be appointed as police chief of an entire district.

8)  Jaipur Literature Festival began: The seventh edition of the popular Jaipur Literature Festival, beginning at Diggi Palace on Friday, will feature as many as 240 speakers, including two Nobel laureates — Amartya Sen and Harold Varmus — who will engage in conversations on a wide range of subjects.

9)  Titanic II all set to sail: Australian millionaire Clive Palmer, who is building a replica of Titanic II, is trying hard to convince up to 1000 cruise ship passengers to board the ship. According to reports, not only the design but the facility of Titanic-II is exactly similar to that of old Titanic.

10) India to send only 3 sportspersons to participate in 'Sochi Winter Olympics' commencing from 7th February 2014 in Russia. They are Shiva Keshavan for Luge event while Himanshu Thakur and Nadeem Iqbal for Alpine Skiing.

11) India occupies a disappointing 97th spot in the recently published 'Global Food Index 2014' that listed 125 countries with adequate available data.